Latest update April 18th, 2024 12:59 AM
Feb 27, 2018 News
The public education system has been thriving even in the face of many challenges, some of which have the potential of impacting the performances of pupils and students alike. But teachers have remained committed to the task of moulding the minds of their charges through it all.
This approach, which has been adopted by many dedicated teachers, has been fully endorsed and well supported by the Guyana Teachers’ Union [GTU] – the body entrusted with the role of representing the public school teachers across the country. The GTU currently has within its membership in excess of 6,000 teachers.
Keen on ensuring that its membership is not taken for granted, the GTU has been relentless in its advocacy for Government, through the Ministry of Education, to address some of the shortcomings in the system. While increases in salaries have for the past few years been paramount in the union’s advocacy, it has also been ardently making representation for non-salary compensation for teachers as well.
This disclosure was recently made by General Secretary of the GTU, Ms. Coretta McDonald. Such issues, according to McDonald, were brought to the fore during recent negotiations at the level of a Government-appointed Task Force which was established to fast-track the realisation of a wages and salary package for teachers.
The GTU had inked a multi-year agreement with the previous administration, with the last concluding at the end of 2015. Although the union had since then presented a proposal for a new agreement, reports suggest that negotiations commenced in earnest towards the end of last year.
The negotiation process, which recently came to an end and is now dependent on the approval of Cabinet, saw non-salary compensation for teachers among the matters brought to the table, McDonald said. Among these, she revealed, were issues such as the shortage of teachers in the public school system. Another issue that has been up for discussion, too, is that of accommodation for those teachers who are from the coastland, but are required to render their teaching services in the hinterland.
But a crucial non-salary issue that many teachers have long been looking to benefit from is that of the housing revolving fund. This has in fact been one of the matters that the Union had brought to the attention of the APNU+AFC administration since it took office in 2015.
But following a meeting with union representatives, Minister of State Joseph Harmon had explained that there isn’t much that Government can do to fast track the implementation of the revolving fund project.
The project is one that saw money being collected each year from Government in order to disperse to 20 teachers, $2 million each, annually, as a form of assistance towards the construction of their homes. But McDonald had told this publication that “We have not been able to get a financial agency, one of the commercial banks, to carry through with it for us.”
This is due to the fact, McDonald explained, that attempts were made to ask of teachers to pay interest on the $2 million offered.
“We are saying that we cannot accept that, because rather than our teachers taking $2 million and having to pay interest as if they were taking $10 million, we might as well send them to take a $10 million loan…”
McDonald added, “On that issue, Minister Harmon said he couldn’t decide which agency we should use. He said what we should do is try to seek out other agencies to see if they are willing to take the project on.”
The General Secretary disclosed that the Union was anticipating the support of the Ministry of Finance. But according to Harmon, McDonald said, “the Ministry of Finance has its own issues, so it couldn’t take on the project. As it is right now the money is in the bank and we are just waiting for an agency which will be willing to roll out this project.”
The Union is, however, hopeful that it could eventually solicit the involvement of Coop Societies to help bring the project to fruition, McDonald related.
JAGDEO ADDING MORE DANGER TO GUYANA AND THE REGION
Apr 18, 2024
SportsMax – West Indies captain Hayley Matthews has been named Wisden’s leading Twenty20 Cricketer for 2023, as she topped all and sundry, including her male counterparts. Alan Gardner looks...Kaieteur News – Compliments of the Ministry of Education, our secondary school children are being treated to a stage... more
By Sir Ronald Sanders Waterfalls Magazine – On April 10, the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States... more
Freedom of speech is our core value at Kaieteur News. If the letter/e-mail you sent was not published, and you believe that its contents were not libellous, let us know, please contact us by phone or email.
Feel free to send us your comments and/or criticisms.
Contact: 624-6456; 225-8452; 225-8458; 225-8463; 225-8465; 225-8473 or 225-8491.
Or by Email: [email protected] / [email protected]